Feel For The Moment
by Officer BudBabe
Summary: In order to find a suspect, Detective Inspector Amelia Ryan is sent to Las Vegas to work with the crime lab. Amelia and the Team uncover something greater and more deceitful than they ever expected. Nick Romance
1. Default Chapter

**Title: Feel for the moment**

**Author: Officer BudBabe**

**Summary: In order to find a suspect, Detective Inspector Amelia Ryan is sent to Las Vegas to work with the crime lab. Amelia and the Team uncover something greater and more deceitful than they ever expected. Romance/Angst/Action**

**Pairings: Nick/Amelia**

**Rating: K+ - Some content may not be suitable for young children.**

**Disclaimer: This is a non profit piece of fiction written for entertainment purposes only. I only own the character Amelia and the people she works with in England. **

_**Chapter One**_

**XXXX**

**Trafalgar Square**

**London, England**

**Wednesday, 19th January**

**11:41PM**

**XXXX**

The rain had finally passed over and Amelia watched as her breath rose into the night time air. Trafalgar was just as loud during the night as it was during the day. The rush of the fountains coupled with the shouts of drunken teenagers made it near impossible to concentrate. The lights that were positioned under the fountain seemed tacky and out of place in the traditional masonry.

Amelia straightened as she saw a boy, perhaps aged seventeen, amble towards her. Most of his features were hidden by a baseball cap and his jeans were slung so low on his hips they may as well have been round his ankles. A cigarette hung out of his mouth and he kept taking deep drags on it.

"Alright?" He mumbled, nodding to her. Amelia raised her eyebrows as he sat on the wall next to her and offered her a cigarette. She shook her head.

"How much are you for a coupla' hours then?"

Turning to him, Amelia flashed him a dangerous smile "Too much for you. Now run along, I'm sure you have to be at MacDonald's early in the morning."

The boy tutted and walked off to rejoin his friends "Fucking frigid cow." He muttered "You're in the wrong business love!" He yelled back over his shoulder.

_Anyone who told you to be yourself really couldn't have given you worse advice_ Amelia wanted toretort. The only thing stopping her was the fact that she could jeopardise her cover. Amelia looked down at herself and rolled her eyes. Dressing like a prostitute for work was really not how she had wanted to spend her evening.

Rubbing her hands together to keep the feeling in them, Amelia longed for her warm flat in Victoria Court. Archimedes, her grey British Shorthair would be curled up on the sofa fast asleep in the warmth. The people in the flat above her would be laughing and talking with the guests at one of their many dinner parties. Amelia had always liked to lie in bed and listen to the gentle murmur of conversation, the great gust of laughter, and the jovial chink of wine glasses.

Finally she saw the person she had been waiting for. A tall, grey haired man in a non-descript suit was getting out of his car and walking towards her. Amelia tried to smile alluringly and check she had everything she needed in her bag at the same time.

Without speaking the man walked up to her and took her arm gently, leading her back to his car. Behind her, Amelia could hear the whistles and catcalls of the teenagers. She dutifully ignored them and got inside the car.

**XXXX**

Slipping inside her flat, Amelia decided she had never felt so spent in all her life. Shutting the door she immediately stepped out of her clothes and left them in a heap by the front door. Walking through the flat in just her underwear, Amelia collapsed on the sofa and fell into a deep sleep.

**XXXX**

Upon waking, Amelia shivered. Archimedes jumped off her stomach and headed towards the kitchen, signalling that it was breakfast time.

Still in only her underwear, Amelia slid off the sofa and ambled in behind him. Taking note of the time, Amelia poured some cat food into a bowl and set it down in front of her hungry feline.

Wandering into the bathroom, Amelia turned on the shower and waited for it to warm up. Slowly walking around the flat, as if in a daze, Amelia collected a seemingly more or less random collection of objects to take into the bathroom with her.

Standing under the scalding water, Amelia contemplated last night and how this would help them get further on with their investigation. London Crime Laboratory had been working on this case for some time, and Detective Amelia Ryan was head of the operation.

The same Detective Amelia Ryan who stood in Trafalgar square the night before dressed as a prostitute, while another detective sat in a tree behind her and filmed everything that went on.

It wasn't that Amelia had been frightened to take on the undercover work, just slightly apprehensive. And now, as she stood in her shower, trying to scrub away all remnants of the night before, she understood why. The dirtiness she was feeling, even if it was for a good cause, was overwhelming. She had slept with a criminal. He had even paid her. Three hundred pounds he had pressed into her hand at the end of it all. That money was now lying in an evidence bag in her handbag.

Amelia turned off the shower and stepped out into the steam filled bathroom. Wrapping herself in a towel, she wandered over to the mirror and began to trace random shapes in the glass with her fingertip.

Moving as if she were underwater, Amelia walked about the flat getting ready to go to work slowly and steadily. Dressing in black trousers and a white blouse, Amelia pulled her curly brown hair back into a ponytail, leaving a few stubborn corkscrews framing her face.

Stepping outside into the fresh morning air, Amelia suppressed a shiver and pulled her coat tighter around her. Sighing, she began the long journey to work.

**XXXX**

Amelia sat in silence with the other people on the case, watching the video tape made by Detective Robson the night before. A small wave of laughter ran through the room as they watched Amelia brush off the teenager.

The video finished up, and Amelia was awarded with a few pats on the back for her field work.

The rest of the day went as normal, Amelia spent most of it in the lab trying to analyse blood samples she had managed to gain from her little jaunt with their suspect the night before. Fortunately enough, the guy had been into whips and pleasure from pain and all that kind of stuff.

Amelia blinked her tiredness away as she stared through the microscope for what seemed to be the millionth time that hour.

"Detective?" Amelia turned to see Susan, one of the Admin. girls, stood in the doorway. She looked about apprehensively, as if unsure about what the lab might hold.

"Hi there Sue. What do you need?" Amelia stood and stretched her arms high above her head. Removing her Lab specs with one hand, she motioned for Susan to come closer with the other. The mousy haired young woman stepped forward tentatively, her brown eyes blinking behind bottle thick glasses.

"The Captain wants to speak to you. He said not to come if you're busy, but it's quite urgent."

Amelia nodded "Thanks Sue. I'll go now. This evidence has nothing new to reveal anyway." Without removing her lab coat, Amelia followed Susan through the corridors, being greeted by various friends and co workers along the way. Upon reaching Captain Jameson's office, Amelia took a deep breath and knocked officiously. The knock was met with a gruff 'Enter.'

Inside the office, Jameson was slumped at his desk behind a mountain of paperwork. He looked up and smiled wryly at Amelia "How did last night go?"

"Got the blood samples we needed. The cash he gave me is irrelevant because it's really difficult to lift any kind of DNA off of money. I managed to collect a few carpet fibres from his car because they looked foreign to me. They didn't match the colour or texture of the carpet in the car. I'm just in the middle off processing them."

"Have you found anything new?"

"Well, his blood sample matches the one mixed with the victim's that we took from the crime scene two days ago, but here's the thing, there's another person's blood mixed with that. So in theory, we could place two people at the crime scene, him being one of them."

Jameson nodded "OK, that's something new. Also, it gives us enough evidence to warrant an interrogation. Nice work."

"That's not what you wanted to see me for though, is it?"

Jameson shifted uncomfortably in his seat "No. We managed to get a lead on the spouse of the victim. It turns out he's taken off to America with the cash that his wife left him in her will. Las Vegas more specifically. Normally we would wait until we had solid evidence against him to go all the way out there to perform an arrest, but he's left us with no previous criminal record and no blood sample. It's entirely possible that this is the thirdblood type found at the crime scene.Under the circumstances, I would normally leave it to the Las Vegas police, but they should really have someone out there who's processed the crime scene first hand and has a good knowledge of the profiles we've built up."

Amelia frowned "What are you saying to me, Bob?"

"I'm saying, I think you should fly out to Las Vegas to keep any eye on this guy, get hold of a blood sample and what have you. A bit like a special project, if you know what I mean."

Amelia nodded "And I'll be working with Las Vegas Crime Laboratory will I?"

"Yes. From what I hear they're one of the best."

"How long will I be gone?"

"I genuinely don't know. You could be out there a few days, or a few weeks. However long it takes. We have a budget set aside for whoever wants to take on the task."

"What about my flat, my cat and all that?"

Jameson smiled "We will take care of everything. Someone will be around to look after your cat. You just need to make sure you're up to date on everything. Bills and so on."

Amelia nodded "I suppose there's nothing to stop me from saying yes, is there?"

**XXXX**

Taking one last look at her little flat, Amelia breathed in the familiar scent, bent down and scratched Archimedes behind the ears one last time. The feline rubbed his head against her knee in an affectionate plea to stay. Amelia smiled and straightened.

"I can't Archie. It's for work. I'll be back soon."

And with that she shut the door gently behind her.

**XXXX**

Reviews will be hugely appreciated!


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to Shadowwind for my first review and Nay for my second! I certainly do have action planned for later chapters.**

**Disclaimer: In the words of Fairly Odd Parents' Dad 'NOT MINE!' Lyrics are courtesy of Offspring and I don't own those either.**

**All the locations mentioned in these chapters are real buildings. Any characters resembling real life people are purely coincidental.**

_**Chapter Two**_

**XXXX**

**Acton Police Station**

**Ealing Borough**

**London, England**

**Sunday, 23rd January**

**10:02 AM**

**XXXX**

The rain came down in sheets as Amelia signaled for the taxi driver to wait and then dove out into the storm. Sprinting the ten feet between the Taxi and the front door of the station, she held her hands over her head as if to provide some sort of protection.

Stepping inside Amelia was greeted by the neutral walls of the place where she had worked for four years. Early Sunday morning, and the Saturday night trouble-makers were just being released. Behind the front desk, filling in the Short-stay book was Ricky, a Constable and close friend of Amelia's. He looked up and smiled when she came crashing through the door. Ricky had a nice, sort of lived-in face. His deep green eyes crinkled at the edges and his skin was tanned and baby soft. Definitely popular with the girls in the station. Amelia considered him one of her best friends and trusted him implicitly.

"All ready for your trip to Vegas then? God, you detectives have it so easy." He remarked dryly as she made her way over to the desk, dripping water on the floor.

"Yeah, just so incredibly easy, going out there to meet a bunch of other detectives who don't want me on their turf, and trying to find a man in the third largest country in the world. I don't know how I sleep at night." Amelia retorted, leaning heavily on the desk "I gave you the keys to my flat didn't?"

Ricky sighed exasperatedly "Yes Amelia. You gave me the keys to your flat."

"Just making sure. If I come back and Archimedes is a twitching heap of malnutrition on the floor I'll be after you. Now, you know what I'm going to ask don't you?"

Ricky's eyes widened in mock alarm "Amelia, this is so sudden! Of course I'll go with you to Las Vegas and marry you in an Elvis themed chapel!"

Amelia looked up, shielding her eyes as if cloud watching "Oh look, Rick! There goes your joke! Oh, but… why is it plummeting like a Lead balloon?"

Ricky rolled his eyes, reached under the desk and produced an A4 Manila envelope with a flourish "Here you are. Fresh from Scotland yard."

"Lovely." Amelia took the envelope and tucked it into her shoulder bag. She hoisted herself over the desk and placed a clumsy peck on Ricky's cheek, "Don't get into any trouble while I'm gone."

"You must be joking love. You are the trouble." Amelia was turning to leave when he called after her "Mia?" he used his nickname for her. She turned back "Yeah?"

Ricky paused, took a deep breath "When you come back, do you… I don't know… want to go out for a meal with me?"

Amelia looked slightly shocked, but seemed to compose herself just in time "Ricky… "

He held a hand up to silence her "Just think about it OK? Don't give me an answer now. Maybe… ring me when you get there?"

Amelia opened her mouth to say something, but then seemed to think better of it. Instead, she nodded a little, and again, turned to leave. This time, Ricky didn't stop her.

**XXXX**

**Las Vegas McCarran International Airport**

**Nevada, USA**

**Sunday, 23rd January (Again)**

**2:00 PM**

**XXXX**

The plane landed with a bump and taxied along the runway. Amelia shook herself groggily awake and looked out of the window. The sun shone brightly and the blue stretch of sky was broken only occasionally by crisp white clouds.

Grabbing her hand luggage from overhead storage Amelia took a quick peak inside to make sure the profile envelope was still in there.

Stepping off the plane Amelia blinked in the light like a newborn rabbit. She let herself be shepherded onto the bus while all the while staring around, taking in her new surroundings. The weather was most unusual for January. January in England, at least. Amelia's body was having trouble adjusting to the warmth of the sun on her skin. It had been pouring with rain when she had left England.

In the heat and closeness of the air, Amelia's thoughts turned to Ricky. He had asked her out… On a date. Amelia had never really considered Ricky in the romantic way. She bit her lip and wondered what she would say to him when they next spoke.

The Bus trundled off towards the Arrivals gate where Amelia stumbled through the automatic doors into the cool sanctuary of the Airport. She looked on as friends and families greeted each other joyfully and smiled as she watched an elderly couple greeted a young boy and girl, obviously their grandchildren. A tap on her shoulder brought her sharply back to her senses.

"Detective Ryan?" Amelia turned to see a tall dark haired woman, probably the same age or slightly younger than herself. She was dressed in black slacks and boots and Amelia marveled at her ability to deal with the heat. Already sweating, Amelia mentally resolved to buy some lighter clothes as soon as possible.

"Yes, that's me. Hello." Amelia offered her hand. The brunette took it and smiled "My name is Sara Sidle. I work at the crime lab. It's really good of you to come out here."

"Thanks for letting me come and help," Amelia shook her head "Some Crime labs are quite protective of their territory, especially when the new person is all the way from a different country."

Sara laughed and said "Well, we really couldn't turn you down, having heard about all the work you put into the case."

"Oh, so you've heard about the whole 'dressing up as a prostitute' ordeal I take it?" Amelia and Sara began to walk over to the baggage carousel.

"Actually, we were sent a copy of the tape as evidence."

"Oh right." Amelia made a face "So this is what porn stars feel like."

Sara laughed "I think it's good that you're dedicated to your work."

Amelia pulled her bag off the carousel and hoisted the strap over her shoulder. Sara eyed the duffel with skepticism "Is that all your stuff?"

Amelia nodded "Yeah. If I need more I'll just buy it. I didn't want to bring loads in case I was only out here a few days."

"That's a good idea, I guess."

**XXXX**

"There's nothing new to report, I'm afraid." Sara spoke over the roar of the engine. Amelia leaned back in her seat and watched the people go by in a blur. The streets of Las Vegas seemed lighter and less threatening by day. Of course, Amelia was only going on what she had seen on Television.

"Suspect's a pretty tough one to find, but considering we haven't got very many pictures of him, it's not surprising. But I'm hoping that will change now that you're here and you've actually interviewed him."

"OK. Before I went to the airport I picked up a psychological profile that a contact of mine at Scotland Yard has been building up over the past few days." Amelia gestured to her carry-on luggage currently residing on the backseat.

Sara had the stereo playing at a low volume, but Amelia could hear the strains of American Hi-Fi over the engine.

"There are three other CSIs working on this case. There's Warrick Brown, who specializes in Audio-visual analysis. There's Nick Stokes who's an expert in Hair and fibre analysis. And lastly there's Greg Sanders, the newest addiction to our team. He works in the lab mostly. A real Genius, but don't tell him I said that." Sara winked. Amelia smiled slightly.

"I didn't get a chance to ask our head of department what you specialized in. What is it you do?"

Amelia smiled inwardly at how polite this young investigator was being. There could have only been a year's age gap between them but Amelia guessed that the Eleven hour flight had not been kind to her appearance.

"Well, we don't really have specialized areas in England but I suppose you could say I'm more experienced in the field of weapons and wounds than any of the others."

"Oh right." Sara nodded.

Amelia shifted in her seat "So what is it you specialize in?"

"Element and Material analysis. Sounds boring but its something I've always found fascinating."

"No it doesn't sound boring. I never managed to get to grips with it though, for some reason."

The rest of the car ride continued in comfortable conversation. Amelia declined the offer of a detour to the hotel she was meant to be staying at, instead opting to go straight to the Laboratory.

**XXXX**

**Las Vegas Crime Laboratory**

**Nevada, USA**

**2:31 PM**

**XXXX **

'_I want you  
_

_All tattooed  
_

_I want you bad _

complete me

_Mistreat me  
_

_Want you to be bad…'_

Offspring blasted down the hallways, bouncing off the walls. The noise hit Amelia as soon as she stepped inside, the loud rock music waking her up. Sara smiled apologetically.

Amelia read her look "Its fine. It's nice to hear that there are still people in the business who have good taste in music. It's mostly David Cassidy where I work."

Sara laughed 'I'll take you to meet the boss." As they walked along the corridors Amelia ran her fingers through her brown shoulder length hair, trying to work out some of the knots from the wavy mess. She quickly ran her fingers under her eyes to remove any eyeliner that may have run.

After following Sara through a series of corridors, they finally stopped at the end of one. Sara knocked and waited for a reply.

Upon opening the door they came upon a cluttered office. Sat behind a desk in the middle of it all was a tall man, greying but obviously still handsome.

"This is Detective Ryan from England, Gil." Gil stood and moved to shake hands with Amelia "Pleased to meet you. We've heard good things from Captain Jameson."

Amelia smiled "Thank you for having me out here to help."

Gil turned to Sara "Why don't you take Detective Ryan to meet the others? You'll need to get Greg from the lab. I'll be along to the break room in a little while. Jim wants to brief us. Apparently they've found a body in connection with the case." Sara nodded. Gil turned to Amelia.

"Meeting the whole team together is quite an unnerving experience and they may seem a little intimidating, but I assure you they're all friendly enough."

**XXXX**

Amelia traipsed down the corridor after Sara feeling like a lost child, tired and irritable. As they neared the Laboratory, the music got louder. Upon entering, Amelia spied a gangly sandy haired man sitting at that work bench.

"Greg! Turn the music down!" Greg turned and a lazy grin spread across his face.

"Sure Sara. I take it this is the fair English maiden?" Greg stooped in a mock bow and despite her tiredness, Amelia had to smile. It was nice to meet people who hadn't yet lost their sense of humour.

"Not very fair after an eleven hour flight, but I'm English so you're half right. Nice to meet you." Amelia stuck out her hand for him to shake. Greg took it and smiled.

"Grissom wants everyone in the break room. Jim wants to brief us on another body they've found in connection with the case Detective Ryan is here for."

"Please," Amelia held up her hands "Call me Amelia."

"That's a pretty name. Sounds good enough to eat." Greg smiled cheekily as the three people began to traipse along the corridor, Sara in the lead. She turned to Amelia and said "Don't worry. He really is like this all the time."

"Don't hate me for complimenting someone else, Sara. You know I only have eyes for you."

**XXXX**

Stepping into the break room, Amelia's eyes met a clean, businesslike space. Four other people were there. A broad man with thinning hair stood in the corner of the room talking quietly on his cell phone. A slender blonde woman sat at the table going through paperwork. Leaning against one of the kitchen units with his back to them, a tall man stood reading a magazine, a coffee cup in his free hand. From the back he was broad shouldered and his posture showed a relaxed disposition.

"Ah, this must be Detective Ryan." The balding man shut off his phone, stepped forward and took Amelia's hand "I'm Captain Jim Brass."

"Please, call me Amelia. It's really good to meet you." Amelia smiled. Jim took her arm and led her around the room.

"Well you already know Greg and Sara. Let me introduce you to Catherine Willows, another one of our team." The blonde haired woman looked up and smiled slightly. She reached her hand up to shake Amelia's "It's good to meet you. How was your flight?"

"It was good thanks. Great to meet you too." Catherine smiled and went back to her work. Jim steered her in the direction of the small kitchenette where the man was still standing.

"Nick, this is Detective Amelia Ryan from England. She's here to work with you on the special case." Amelia shook Nick's hand warmly, seeing his face for the first time. His features were set and intense, the darkness of his eyes almost matching the darkness of his hair. He smiled welcomingly and took her hand.

"Nice to meet you." Amelia smiled. Nick nodded.

"It's good to have you with us, Detective Ryan."

"Please call me Amelia." Third time of the day. Wow, these people were really polite. Amelia felt like she was begging for something and being constantly rejected. It was quite unnerving.

At that point Grissom walked in. The room fell silent and looked expectantly at Jim, the reason they were all there. He cleared his throat and moved to the middle of the room.

"Well you've all been introduced to Detective Amelia Ryan from England. Amelia is here to contribute to the McGraw case. You've all seen the Documents, evidence and - ahem – things that have been sent over." Jim cleared his throat uncomfortably "We got reports in just under a half hour ago that another body has been found in connection with the case. The body was found by a tramp outside the Liberace Museum. A young woman. I'm going to send all the CSI's working on this case in order get Amelia acquainted with the way you all work. Warrick's already there."

**XXXX**

**Outside the Liberace Museum**

**Tropicana Avenue**

**Las Vegas, Nevada, USA**

**3:16 PM**

**XXXX**

Amelia rode with Sara again, and Nick arrived first at the crime scene, which had been cordoned off using police tape. Greg had stayed behind to set the lab up for any evidence that may be found.

"Where do you think they are?" Nick crossed his arms and leaned back against his car. Warrick, who had been the first CSI on the scene, shook his head.

"I don't know. Probably stuck in traffic. What's the Detective from England like?"

Nick shrugged "She seems nice. Quiet. Doesn't ask too many questions. I only met her for a few minutes but she pretty much keeps to herself. She might be shy, but I don't know. Too early to tell what kind of person she is."

"Does she seem like a Man-eating career bitch on a power trip though?" Nick laughed.

"I don't think so, Warrick."

Warrick nodded and turned to see Sara's car pull up alongside Nick's. Sara got out, followed by Amelia. Warrick took in her slim figure and smooth looking skin. She wore jeans that almost obscured her suede, deck style trainers from view. A brown and silver disc belt hung on her hips and on her top half she wore a white tank top. Her short, wavy hair had been hurriedly pulled up. The colour seemed to differ between a dark blond and a tawny brown. Her face was heart shaped and delicate, her grey almond shaped eyes seeming slightly too big. Overall, she was not beautiful, but striking. Definitely striking.

"Warrick, this is Amelia, the detective from England." Warrick offered her his hand ad she shook it warmly "Thanks for coming out."

Amelia smiled slightly "Thanks for having me out here."

Warrick nodded "Let's go on over then."

The four people ducked under the police tape and made their way over to where the tramp was being interviewed. A short, fat police officer pointed them towards where the body had been found.

The woman lay on her front behind a dumpster, her long honey blonde hair mixing with the blood from her head wound. There was a deep wound, most probably from a knife, located in her right shoulder blade. Her left arm was in plain view and Sara didn't know what made her look at it so closely but she spotted a white ring around the fourth finger. Motioning to the others she gestured towards it "What do you suppose it is?"

"Either Impetigo, or more likely, a suntan ring. This woman could have been engaged, or married." Amelia suggested.

"There are footsteps leading to the body, but not away. No tire tracks either." Warrick reported after an initial search of the immediate area "That would suggest this wasn't a dumping place for the body. She must have crawled, or staggered here, lay down and died."

Amelia procured some gloves from somewhere and leaned down to touch the body "It looks like she's in the last stages of Rigor Mortis. I can't be certain, but it looks like she's only got a couple of hours left. I would suggest that she's been dead since yesterday morning, possibly as early as the night before last."

Sara, Nick and Warrick donned rubber gloves also and began to search the body and surrounding area for clues.

Amelia checked the pockets of the corpse, finding only a set of keys. Upon studying the head wound she decided it was a blunt object, possibly some sort of vase. The wound in her shoulder looked like it had entered from behind, puncturing a lung, so they could rule out a possible suicide. The Pathologists would have to decide. Around the woman's neck there was a Mother of Pearl Shell pendant on a black piece of cord. Amelia frowned and removed it from the corpse with a pair of tweezers, bagging it. She couldn't help feeling she had seen this necklace somewhere before.

**XXXX**

Amelia rode back to the Crime Lab with Nick, which started off considerably more uncomfortably than being in the car with Sara, who had given Warrick and several other people a ride back. Amelia kept her eyes on the road and concentrated on the song playing on the radio.

"So what contribution have you had to the case so far in England?" Nick asked in a soft drawl, possibly Texan, Amelia thought.

"You mean apart from dressing up as a prostitute and standing in Trafalgar square?" Nick smiled.

"Oh yeah. I remember seeing that. Some joker made popcorn."

"Really?" Amelia asked, suddenly dismayed "I didn't think it was that brilliant."

"Well," Nick sighed, "What you have to remember is, half of these guys are lab rats. They don't get any. Period."

Amelia turned to him with a raised eyebrow "How many people watched that tape, exactly?"

Nick frowned "I guess three or four Lab techs, who were sent to analyse some of the finer details, and Warrick, Sara, and I."

"Hmm." Amelia matched Nick's frown and sunk slightly lower in her seat.

"So… You didn't answer my question." Nick spoke easily, conversationally. His words were sometimes quiet and soft spoken, but mostly officious. Amelia had noticed the tone with which he had addressed the police officers. All business. His arms, lithe and tanned, were both stretched out so the hands could rest on the steering wheel. His fingers tapped out an idle rhythm as they waited for the lights to change. Amelia shrugged.

"One of two D.I's at the scene of the first murder. I interviewed the victim's husband-the guy we're trying to find- helped to build up a psychological profile of him and several others we believe were in connection with the murder and… well, you know about the video tape."

Nick nodded "The crime scene pictures were pretty gruesome. Did they live in a bad area?"

Amelia nodded "Yeah, it was a real dump. Council estate. Pretty seedy. The neighbours that we interviewed said they lived alone and were very happy together, which could mean that he had nothing to do with her death, but considering he took off the day after the murder I'm not so sure anymore."

Nick studied the way in which Amelia spoke. Quietly, but with absolute confidence of every word she was saying. This woman knew her job and knew that there was no room for error. Even her posture seemed official and professional. In fact, he had heard her talk about nothing except work since he had met her. Smiling a little, Nick guessed Amelia was keen to make a good first impression and let everyone know that they hadn't made a mistake in letting her come and help them. Watching the way her eyelids drooped and laughing inwardly as she valiantly tried to suppress a yawn, Nick commented on how tired she must be after her long flight.

"Yeah, I am a little tired." Amelia confessed "I was sat next to a computer salesman who completely pole-axed himself in the first hour and wouldn't stop snoring for the next ten."

Nick laughed. Easing into comfortable conversation, the two talked about the differences between Las Vegas and London, the hotel Amelia was staying at and if she missed her home.

"So what's it like in London?" Nick asked curiously. Amelia shrugged.

"It's not too different from here, with the exception of uh… everything." Nick laughed. Amelia's words were dry and witty "Really, it's very… British. Lots of tourists. Very crowded."

"And you live in the thick of it all?"

"No. I live on the outskirts of everything in a converted flat. It's a sweet neighbourhood. I miss it already." She confessed, smiling sheepishly.

"Well I sure hope we figure this out so you can make it home soon. I miss my home town too, so I know what you're going through."

"Where are you from?"

"Texas."

"I thought so." Nick smiled "The accent gave me away huh?"

"Just a little."

**XXXX**

**I'm sorry that this took an extra long time to post because I've been doing my GCSEs and trying to write at the same time. I started this chapter and couldn't decide on an appropriate cut – off point, so this little doozy ended up being thirteen pages long. I know there's not much more action than the last chapter but I'm trying to work out a way to work up to it so please bear with me. I hope you liked this chapter. Please review! Feedback and suggestions are more than welcome!**


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